The World We Reach For
by Sunlight Memory
Summary: When their home is attacked by the dark forces, Ventus, Aqua and Terra are forced to leave and decide to join the Rebellion. At the same time, the enemy seeks a weapon able to destroy everything. AU. Terqua, SoKai, RokuNami and others.
1. Prologue: Those who Escaped

This is the result of an idea that got stuck in my head for quite a while ago.

The story is AU, and therefore, not everything will be like they are in the games.

Also, be aware of heavy use of Final Fantasy characters, far more than those who originally appears in Kingdom Hearts.

I apologise for any grammar mistake or if the characters are OOC.

**Pairings**: Though romance is not the main point of this story, it will show up at times. If you are interested in the list of parings that will appear, let me know and I will put it up at the beginning of the next chapter.

**Disclaimer:** Sadly, I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy.

**Prologue**

**Those Who Escaped**

The loud sounds of alarms were the only thing breaking through the darkness and silence surrounding the old laboratory. At first, the scientists working at the place had been confused; as far as most of them knew, the alarms had never gone off before. The system had different sounds for different cases, but it was an old one which hadn't even been tested ones during the last ten years. Therefore, no one remembered what sound meant which case.

A young woman ran through the white corridors of the laboratory. She had been in the cafeteria when the alarm went off, about to buy a cup of hot coffee to help her stay awake during the experiment some colleagues of her and she were supposed to perform over the night. The cup now lay shattered on the floor of the cafeteria, forgotten as she left to find her superior.

"Hey! What the hell is going on?" a man called out to her as they passed each other by, both stopping to gain answers for their questions.

"I don't know! Some said something about the experiments escaping, but I don't know if that is true," she called back. The woman didn't believe the words her colleague had uttered, refused to believe the experiments could have escaped. How could they have done so, when guards watched their cells every minute of the day? For all she knew, the alarm could mean fire, or just smoke. Maybe some idiots had decided to cook dinner underneath one of the sensors? There were enough newbies around for that kind of pranks.

The man focused his eyes on her, waited for the woman to say more.

"Do you remember what this sound means?" she asked.

"No, if I did, I wouldn't ask what was going on!" he left, ran down the corridor leading to the meeting room. The woman stared after him until he was out of sight. Shaking her head, she turned around to continue toward her destination. A movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention. Brown eyes snapped toward the corridor on the left, a path that led toward the cells where they kept the experiments. There, calmly walking away from where she stood, was a young boy she had seen too many times over the last few weeks. The Master's apprentice.

It wasn't unusual for him to walk alone in the corridors at night, however, by the way he constantly looked into the upcoming corridors to the left side, it seemed like he was looking for something. _That_ was unusual.

She followed.

He led her down several corridors, further into the laboratory, further away from the chaos of the alarm and panicking scientists. The boy stopped, causing her to do the same. Through their entire journey into the depth of the laboratory, she had made sure to keep a few metres between them, just in case the boy decided to do something funny involving that strange weapon of his. He turned around, and the woman felt a shiver of fear run down her spine as golden eyes stared at her. Those eyes weren't normal; no person could hold so much _evil_ as they showed. A cruel smile played over his lips, the eyes traveled toward the side corridor he had stopped in front, before he started to walk again, this time down the path they had just come. The boy walked by her, didn't seem to care as he left her behind. Something else had caught her attention; the corridor he had just left after a quick look. The way he had stared at her, then the corridor, as if he wanted her to look for herself what could be found in that corridor.

Her feet led her before she had even decided to take a look, and too quickly for what she could enjoy, the woman found herself staring down into the darkness of the corridor. The lights had gone out, surely not been repaired due to the corridor being so far away from the main rooms they used.

A familiar sound came from the darkness, the sound of quick footsteps against cold floor. Not just one set, if she could trust her ears, but several. Thinking it might have something to do with the alarms still sounding in the far distance; the woman followed the sounds in quick tempo into the darkness.

It didn't take long before she found the sources of the sounds. The lights had come back on sometime during her walk, or maybe she had just walked into an area where the lights never had been gone to begin with, allowing her to see who or what she was following.

Seven young children were running down the corridor, only to be stopped as they reached a dead end. There were no side corridors, hadn't been any since they went down this path, leaving the children trapped with the woman behind them, blocking any way of escape they might have by going back the way they came. She knew them all, both by name and codename. The experiments, the reason behind the alarm.

The two oldest of them turned around to face her, both stepping forward as if to protect the younger children behind them. The scientist's eyes moved from one to the other, looking for anything that might reveal what they were going to do.

The oldest was a young boy around the age of ten, tall with vertically spiked brown hair and blue eyes. Despite the calm look on his face, the woman could feel his hatred for her as he held out his hand, as if to summon something. And yet, he didn't really strike her as dangerous. Not yet, but maybe when he grew older.

The other one to step forward was a girl a year younger than the boy. She was shorter than him, yet still taller than the rest of the children. Blue hair moved across and around her face as she moved, readying herself for whatever attack might come her way. Blue eyes glared daggers at the woman.

"Well, children, you have caused enough chaos for one night. Now, behave and come back with me," the scientist said, still wondering how they got out of their cells to begin with.

"We won't!" Brown eyes moved toward the one who had spoken, a young boy around five with messy and spiky brown hair – a lighter colour than that of the oldest boy – and blue eyes. He stood not far away from the blue-haired girl, together with two other of their little group. On his left side was yet another girl, this one around five with red hair and blue eyes. She was shorter than the boy at the same age, and easily the shortest of them all.

Behind the two five years old stood another boy, this one taller than both and a year older. Blue green eyes glared in her direction, and if looks could kill, the woman was sure she would be long gone. For a six year old, he sure looked ready to battle someone so much older than him.

Her eyes moved to the two last members of the runaways, a couple of identical twins boys at the same age as the boy who had spoken, hiding in the right corner behind their companions. It was hard to see them apart as they both had the same golden blond hair even spiked the same way and identical blue eyes, yet one big thing made her able to know who was who at the moment; the younger of the two seemed to be asleep, comatose as a result of an experiment done on him by the Master several weeks ago. The older twin sat crouched beside his brother, a protective arm in front of him while blue eyes stared at the scientist. Why they had even bothered taking him with them, she couldn't understand. He would just be in the way, unable to move without any help from the others. Maybe that was why they still hadn't gotten out of the building. She shook her head, it didn't matter; she had a mission to finish now that she knew the cause of the alarm.

The woman lifted her arm, palm facing the little group.

"You have left me no choice," she said, gathering her strength to perform the spell she needed. Her eyes were focused on the twins. Those two first, then their companions.

"Aqua!" the oldest boy called out, his eyes moving from the woman to the twins.

"Water!" the blue haired girl shouted, sending a ball of ice cold water toward the woman. The sudden attack surprised her, causing her to drop her concentration as she called out the _Warp_ spell she had prepared. The oldest twin pushed his brother aside as the spell appeared behind him, prevented that both of them got caught up in it.

"Roxas, no!" the younger children's eyes grew wide as they watched their friend disappear in front of them.

The woman's eyes narrowed as she watched the event. The boy she had believed to be completely lost had reached out his hand, trying to grab a hold of his brother as he disappeared. This was surely something she had to report.

"Teleport!" a voice screamed; dragging the woman back from her thoughts just in time to see the three children, who had been standing in a little group this whole time, disappear.

She cursed. Now four out of seven were gone, far out of her reach. Only three still remained; the two oldest and the younger twin.

Such trouble makers, these children.

And yet they had surprised her, being able to use _Teleport_ at such age, not to mention that it had moved _three _of them. There was no way it could have moved all seven, as the spell required a lot of energy, but splitting up into teams on three and three might work. Of course they wouldn't have done that if they had been one too many.

At some point, the brown haired boy had grabbed a hold of both the blue haired girl and the younger of the twins. He smiled evilly, before muttering something the woman couldn't hear, just as she called forth a _Firaga_ spell. The fire spell blasted the wall into pieces, causing yet another alarm to go off.

The woman glared. This was definitively not a good day.

*~^:^~*

The burning flames from the fireplace bathed the otherwise dark room in orange and red coloures, licked the cold stonewalls as they offered a slight warmth. Not enough to heat up the entire room, hardly what was needed to bring warmth to the two chairs nearest to the fire. There was no warmth that stayed long in this castle, no matter how many fires they lit. It was as if they recognised the true heart of the residents and from there kept their distance to anything far away from that.

The room was build in dark stone, a colour that should take in warmth rather well, filled with huge windows that would let the sun shine in brightly on sunny days. Despite the grand size of the room, it was hardly filled with anything. A couple of old and dusty bookshelves stood alongside the wall opposite of the fireplace, a few overused armchairs took up parts of the floor, but other than that, the room remained empty.

An old man stood in front of the fire place, yellow eyes staring into the flames. From somewhere in the distance could he hear a female scream in pain, suffering through her punishment for letting his plan fall to pieces.

The laboratory where she had worked didn't exist anymore. It had been burned down to the ground, deleting all evidence about what had taken place there. Years of hard work, destroyed in a matter of hours.

Yet something good had come out of it all.

The man smiled. The one Keyblade able to summon Kingdom Hearts, the X-blade, could still be created.

*~^:^~*

**AN:** Hope you liked it^^ If you have any questions regarding the story – or anything at all – don't be afraid to ask!


	2. Chapter 1: An Unbreakable Connection

Thank you so much to all who showed interest in the story by reviewing/alerting/favouriting! I really appreciate it.

If you are curious about what kind of pairings might appear in the story (both from Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy), let me know and I'll tell you (or you could check out my profile).

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy.

**Chapter 1**

**An Unbreakable Connection**

The night sky was an interesting thing to watch.

Mostly because of the stars and the moon, but also because of all the sights that followed a seaport city. Lights shining from near the port could be seen from far away, marking themselves against the sky as they lit the way for boats. Once in a month the full moon would add to the light with all its power, turning the night lighter than usual.

Another interesting thing the night sky held and refused to share with others than those who so luckily stared up at it the very moment it happened, were shooting stars. Falling stars as some called them.

A star one could wish upon, hoping for the best.

Land of Departure wasn't like other seaport cities, open for anyone and anything that might come their way. Instead it was well protected among tall and pointy mountains overgrown with grass rising from the ocean around it. Yet it remained one of two cities on the Northern Continent with connection through boat to the Southern Continent.

The city rested on the ground floor, near the foot of the mountains. It was often surrounded by life, carrying the sound of children and adults for all who wished to listen. A safe city, one of few still free from the clutches of the Council. Land of Departure had their own council to rule the city, its own laws only mattering within the walls of the city. Most cities had once been like that, before the Council came along. However, whenever the council of Land of Departure had a problem, they went to the castle overlooking the city, seeking out the guidance of the Keyblade Master living there.

A wise man, in their eyes, someone who knew the world far better than they did. His home, the castle, was located high up in the mountains, a weird building held up by golden chains tightened around the other peaks around it. Parts of the castle also seemed to float in the air on each side of the main part, creating a fairytale-like feeling around the entire place. A beautiful place surrounded by nature.

A young boy lay in the soft grass of one of the castle's many gardens, blue eyes focused on the stars above him. The garden was bathed in pale moonlight, making the white bench behind him almost glow in the dark. All around the edges stood dark lamps someone had forgotten to turn on for the night. Not that it bothered him, of course; the absent of light made it easier to see the night sky. The night air hung all around him, sharpening all smells from the city below. Salt seawater, smoke from pipes, food. A combination of home which could send anyone into the world of dreams if they relaxed enough.

The boy was too busy trying to count the stars to fall asleep. It was just too many of them, leaving him right back at start again almost as soon as he began. He had woken up not long ago, and, unable to fall back asleep, had decided to go outside for a while once he had changed into his normal clothes – a black and white jacket with one colour on each side with a grey vest underneath with one button and white patterns and plain, black, high-necked shirt under it again, black, grey and white pants which balloon outwards before closing up halfway down his legs, a black and white checkered wristband on his left arm and two black, criss-crossing straps over his chest.

And now, he found himself lying in the grass, staring up at the heaven above.

"I knew you would be out here, Ven," a feminine voice said from somewhere behind where he lay, causing the boy to jump into sitting position and twisting around. A young woman smiled softly to him as she walked closer. Short blue hair surrounded her face, matching her blue eyes in a way no other colour would. The woman was a few years older than him, and if they stood side by side, he would reach her to her shoulders. She wore a high-collared halter top in black and blue with two pink, intersecting belts over her breast, white bell-sleeves and fingerless gloves on her hand. A black shorts and stockings reaching halfway up her thighs covered her legs, with two blue cloths hanging from either side of her hips and a white one draped around her waist.

"Aqua!" the boy called out, grinning towards his friend.

"You know, you should have at least brought a blanket," Aqua scolded, the soft smile still covering her pink lips, before she lifted her right hand and ruffled the boy's spiky, blond hair. Ventus pouted, before he stood up. Together they walked over to the edge of the garden, a place with view of the entire city, and a place where they usually hung out.

"Why did you come out here tonight, Ven?" Aqua asked as they stared out on the city below them.

"Couldn't sleep." They sat in silence for a while, the sound of trees moving in the wind the only thing to be heard.

"Do you ever wonder where the others are, Aqua?" the blue-haired woman turned her eyes toward her younger friend. He wore a lost gaze, staring far beyond the sky. Far into memories that would always rest inside their minds.

It had always surprised her, how much he actually remembered of their past before coming to this castle. Nothing of their escape, of course, except from that one moment when his brother disappeared, but of the time before the experiment that left him comatose for months.

Aqua shivered. She hated being reminded of the little boy lying so still in the bed.

"All the time," she often thought about where the others could have ended up. Hopefully somewhere safe, like they did, and together.

It was luck, really, that Terra's _Warp_ spell had taken them to Land of Departure, spiriting them far away from the lab. Not that any of them had even known _where_ the lab had been located; but it hadn't been anywhere near this harbour city. They had ended up right in this garden, almost giving the owner of the castle, who had been out on a midnight walk, a heart attack. Luckily, he had taken them in, cared for them like they where his own children. A Keyblade Master who had been more than satisfied when he figured out these kids also held the powers of the mighty weapon. For ten years had they lived in his castle, training beneath his supervision so that they one day could gain the same title he held. A life filled with much more than they could even hope for back in the lab.

Ventus' blue stare fasten on her face brought the woman back from her trail of thoughts.

"What is it, Ven?" she asked.

"Nothing, really, you just never answered my question," he said, a look on concern on his face, worried that something was wrong with her since he thought she didn't answer.

"Huh?" hadn't he heard her reply?

"I asked if you knew what stars were."

_Oh._

"Well, stars are –"she didn't get any further before someone cut her off.

"All the stars up there are either other worlds or suns." The two friends turned around to find the third one in their group walk towards them. Their friend was a tall, young man, far taller than Ventus would probably ever be. Messy, vertically spiked brown hair moved softly in the weak wind, allowing the bangs framing his face to be more visible than normal. Blue eyes watched the two softly, while a teasing smile played over his lips. He wore a black, skintight, high-collared shirt - showing off the fact that he was rather muscular -, with two red straps criss-crossing over his chest, and wide pants which were dark grey at the top and tan for the rest except from a tiny line at the bottom which carried a lighter brown colour.

"Terra!" Ventus exclaimed, smiling widely toward their older friend as he walked closer to them, sitting down on the right side of the blond boy, causing him to get trapped between his older friends.

"Hard to believe there are so many worlds out there besides our own. The light is their hearts, and it's shining down on us like a million lanterns," the brown-haired man continued, watching the sky above them. The blond boy tilted his head to the side; blue eyes curiously fasten on his friend. Aqua watched them both, interesting in how this conversation would turn out.

"What? I don't get it," Ventus said, his eyes small as he tried to understand what Terra meant.

"In other words, they are just like you, Ven."

"What those _that_ mean?" the youngest of them crossed his arms, glaring angry at the older man. The brown-haired man grinned, before resting a hand on his friend's head, ruffling his already spiky hair.

"You'll find out someday, I'm sure," he said, still carrying a teasing smile. Ventus pushed his hand away, still glaring.

"I wanna know now!"

"You're too young to know now."

"Quit treating me like a kid, Terra!" their argument broke off once Aqua became unable to hide her laughing anymore. She lifted her hand to hide the wide smile covering her lips, but the sound still escaped all action to cover it up.

"Hey, what are _you_ laughing at?" both boys glared at her, though it had been Terra who uttered the words. Blue eyes fell on them both, the laughter dying away as the smile became soft.

"I can't help it. You two would make the weirdest brothers." The words caused the boys to first stare at her in disbelief, before they started laughing loudly, shortly joined by Aqua as she cracked up once more.

They filled the night air with the sound of humour for awhile, before it died away and silence wrapped itself around them again.

"Has anyone ever been out in space?" Ventus asked suddenly, moving his face to both sides to watch his friends. Aqua thought the question over a couple of times; trying to figure out if she had ever heard of anyone being out there. Due to Terra remaining silent, she guessed he also tried to come up with an answer.

No, she didn't remember reading of anyone being out there, but she had once come across an article about the topic.

"I don't think anyone's done it yet, but Shin-Ra once tried to launch a rocket into outer space. Something went wrong and they abandoned the project," she said, still wondering what could cause such a huge company – which controlled most of the Western Continent as well as huge parts of the Southern Continent – to abandon the plan on being the first to send a rocket into outer space.

The blond boy kept his eyes at her for a while, before moving them toward the sky again.

"Must be fun, being the first to make a connection with a world outside our own," his words was filled with longing, dreams of doing those things.

_Connection_.

"Oh yeah," Aqua put her hand into her pocket and pulled out three star-shaped necklaces, each in different colours, held them up in the weak light from the moon above them. The first one was blue with cyan-coloured tips, the second light green and sea green, while the last one was orange and yellow.

"I made us good luck charms, one for each of us," she said, handing Ventus the green one and Terra the orange one, while she kept the blue one for herself.

"Somewhere out in this world there's this tree with star-shaped fruit, and the fruit represents an unbreakable connection. So as long as you and your friends carry good luck charms shaped like it, nothing can ever drive you apart. You'll always find your way back to each other," Aqua smiled, "technically, I think you're supposed to make them with seashells, but I did the best with what I had."

"Oy, sometimes you are such a girl," Terra said, grinning at the blue-haired woman.

"Hey, what do you mean, 'sometimes'?" Aqua crossed her arms, glaring at him. None of them noticed that Ventus, still sitting between them, looked down on his feet which dangled over the edge of the garden, a sad look on his face.

"So this isn't a real good luck charm?" he said, gazing at the star-shaped necklace in his hand. The older friends dropped their arguing, both meeting each others look before turning their attention to their younger friend.

"Well, that's yet to be seen. But I did work a little magic on it," the woman assured him. The blond boy's face split into a grin.

"Really? What?" she smiled mysteriously before lifting her charm up in the air in front of her, letting the moonlight shine upon it.

"An unbreakable connection!"

*~^:^~*

Sometime during the night they moved from the edge of the garden to lying on their backs in the soft grass, forming a triangle between the positions of their heads. Terra had put his arms under his head, trying to catch some sleep before the break of dawn, Ventus kept playing with his good luck charm – they had called them Wayfinders after a short discussion earlier -, while Aqua still watched the sky above them.

"Do you think we will ever meet the others again?" the blond boy's question dragged his friends out of their little dream worlds.

"There's not a doubt in my mind," Terra answered, opening his eyes to watch the night around him.

"And if they don't find us first, we'll find them," Aqua said, moving her head so that she looked straight at her young friend.

"I promise." The spiky haired boy smiled at her, before heavy eyelids fell over blue eyes.

"Yeah. We'll go together. We'll find them." he drifted off, soon fast asleep and lost to the world around him, shortly followed by his two friends.

*~^:^~*

**AN:** As most probably noticed, huge parts of their conversation is from the beginning of Birth By Sleep. Shame on me for using so much of it. (I don't own those parts; they belong to Square Enix and Disney). Hope you like the story so far^^ The action will start to appear soon *cough*next chapter*cough*. Any questions? Just ask^^


	3. Chapter 2: Attack

Thank you so much for your support through reviewing/alerting/favouriting!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything except from the plot.

**Chapter 2**

**Attack**

"I can't believe the Master made us do this again," Terra's voice was filled with annoyance as he walked down the crowded street, glaring at all who dared to stare at him.

"We should have known better than to give Ven chocolate first thing in the morning," Aqua countered, struggling to stop a smile of amusement from breaking out on her lips. It wasn't that often she saw her friend almost buried in shopping bags – he had decided to carry them all instead of letting his friends help.

"Hey! Don't blame it all on me! Terra's the one who broke the window, and _you_ soaked the kitchen!" the blond youth cried out as he walked alongside them, clearly not happy with the blue haired woman's words.

"Because you kicked the ball in my direction _and_ tried to cook even though we told you to stay away from the kitchen," the brunet said, turning his glare to the youngest of them.

Ventus decided to ignore the comment.

Instead he found himself watching the sky above them. Not a cloud could be seen, only the blue colour which so often surrounded the city. It made him smile, despite his friends' lack of enjoyment for their little shopping mission. Hardly anything could turn the day around if the weather was good.

The city itself was filled with life from its habitants as they travelled from shop to shop, hanging out friends or spent their day in one of the many cafés around the main street. White houses stood lined up along the road, almost glowing in the light from the sun.

Children ran past them as they tried to find their way to the nearest park, screaming and laughing as they chased after each other.

Ventus watched them with a fond smile. He could still remember the time when Terra, Aqua and himself had played together in the huge gardens around the Master's castle, a time before their training started for real. It would always be him and Aqua against Terra, something that usually pissed the older boy off more than he wanted to admit. He had felt bad about it, but Aqua would always tell him not to care, no matter what the brunet said.

"Ven, are you coming?" the blue haired woman's voice brought the boy out of the world of memories. He ran the few metres which had appeared between his friends and him, catching up with them just as they were about to stop to wait for him. Without a second glance on the city behind them, the three began the long way up to the castle they called home.

*~^:^~*

Once they reached the front gates to their home, Terra collapsed to the ground, taking the mountain of shopping bags he carried with him. A weak cry of pain escaped him as several of the bags hit him in their fall. Aqua hovered near the fallen brunet, a tiny glimpse of worry in her blue eyes, while Ven grinned widely.

"I hate shopping and I hate shopping bags," the oldest of them breathed, glaring angry at the younger boy who fell to the ground as he bursted out in laughter.

Aqua shook her head. "You didn't have to carry them all; we could have helped you out if you wanted us to," she said, holding out a hand to help her friend back on his feet. The brunet muttered something under his breath, before allowing the blue haired woman to pull him up.

"At least he could have allowed us to use magic."

"How did the shopping go?" a voice called out from atop of the stairs leading into the castle. Three pairs of eyes moved to the source of the voice, look up at the man in front of them. Their Master, Eraqus.

"Very well, Master," Aqua said, smiling slightly. He looked her over, before answering her smile with another.

"Consider the punishment finished, and try to keep from creating havoc next time. After all, A Keyblade Master is someone who protects the peace, not disturbs it," he said, keeping a teasing look in his eyes.

"Now, go and train on using your spells," Eraqus turned around to leave, before he stopped once more, "oh, and Terra, Aqua," he didn't say anything else, just merely looked at his two oldest apprentices, who suddenly became rather flushed and released their hold on each others' hand.

It became dark before they decided to finish up their training. Somewhere along the line had they decided to summon their weapons and train a little with those as well, instead of only focusing on the magic. The weapons were key-shaped blades, each with different design after with they belonged to. And while Aqua and Terra held their _Rainfell_ and _Earthshaker_ in a typical style for a blade, Ventus' held his _Wayward Wind_ in a reverse hold, breaking all normality considering how earlier Keyblade Wielders had held theirs. It didn't matter though, as the reverse hold suited his style.

Maybe it was a good thing they had stayed so long out in the garden, because if it had still been daylight, they probably wouldn't have noticed the strange glow coming from the city below them.

"What's going on down there?" Terra asked, the first to notice that something was wrong, causing his friends to stop and look.

"It's burning!" Aqua suddenly yelled, staring shocked at the sight.

"We gotta do something!" Ven twisted around, ready to run all he could down to the city, however, the only female's voice stopped him.

"Ven," he stared at her over his shoulder, wondering if she would stop him or not, "if the city's under attack, tell everyone to come here, where the Master's spells most likely would keep them safe. We will catch up with you later, after we have informed the Master, and be careful!" she said.

The boy grinned.

"Don't worry, Aqua, I'll bring them all here!" he smiled, before taking off, leaving two worried friends to follow him.

*~^:^~*

Ventus was the first in the trio to reach the city, the first to watch the strange enemy they were to face. Tiny, weird creatures crawled all over the city, appeared from the shadows to attack and hurt those who tried their best to run away. He stared in shock as they just appeared out of nowhere, ruining the trio's beloved Land of Departure.

Not all of them looked the same, the blond boy noticed. Some were blue and pointy, while others were black and more shadowlike. Strange creatures, really, who destroyed everything in their paths.

Those attacked screamed loudly, tried their best to escape from their grips, men, women and children alike. Ven felt weird feeling rise inside his chest, burning its way through him as he watched the enemy attack people he knew, people he cared about. It told him to protect, to keep them safe, and so the blond boy ran forward as he summoned his Keyblade, allowing a battle cry to escape his lips. He dashed toward a fallen woman, ready to protect her as one of the shadowlike creatures got too close. One slash of the weapon turned it into black dust, made it fade away in the dark. It left a bad taste in his mouth, the way his weapon could make them disappear so quickly, the way they just stopped being there. Could it be considered killing when it wasn't even human? The thought was enough to make him shake like a leaf in the wind, and yet pure will stopped him from doing so.

"Thank you," a voice suddenly said behind him, causing the young blond to turn around. The fallen woman had risen to her feet again sometime between his appearing and now, smiling thankfully at the one who had saved her.

"No problem," Ven grinned weakly, before he turned serious, "listen; run as fast as you can up to the castle above the city, and take everyone you meet with you." Hopefully they would be safe there, just like Aqua had said earlier.

She nodded, before running toward the edge of the city. Ventus watched her for a mere second, and then turned his attention to the problem at hand. The enemy was too many; crawling everywhere he laid his eyes. He couldn't take them all on his own, but he couldn't wait for Aqua and Terra to catch up either. Who knew how many would die before they got there?

The market. He needed to reach the market, the centre of the city, where most of the population were likely to meet in a situation like this. From there, he could tell them to head toward the castle, where the Master's protective spells could keep the enemy away.

It didn't take him too long to reach the market; he was a good runner, quick and swift as the wind. Just like his name. He called out to those he passed, told them to go to the castle, to leave the city. Enemies fell to his blade, leaving clouds of black dust behind him as he ran.

The closer he got to his goal, the warmer it became, and it didn't take long before he figured out why. The whole inner parts of the city seemed to be on fire, all the white houses glowing red and orange in the darkness of the night. It lightened up the market, and surprisingly enough it seemed to keep the enemy away. A huge group of people stood gathered around the fountain in the middle of the square making up the centre of the city, a place where the main streets ended. Some stood guard around the square, watching just in case the creatures of the dark should try to walk into the light. They didn't seem to notice him, though, as he walked closer. Why should they, when almost everyone knew who the Master's three apprentices were. He made his weapon disappear anyway. No need to frighten them more than necessary in case they decided not to trust him.

The blond youth took a deep breath as he stepped inside the crowd, trying to decide how to best gain their attention. It would probably be hard with how loudly they chatted, yet he had to try. His eyes fell on the fountain, a beautiful thing with several levels of smaller pools that poured water into the air. If he stood on it, he might be able to get them to notice him. It was worth a shot. In seconds Ventus had climbed onto the edge running around the entire lowest pool, glazing out on those below him.

"Hey!" he tried to call out, hoping it had been loud enough for them to hear.

It worked; people stopped their chatting and watched him, wondering what he would do next.

"You need to evacuate!" he said, moving his eyes from one end of the group to the other, "the castle is safe, go there!" some started to laugh.

"Are you crazy? Walking right out there and into their waiting arms?" a man shouted from the crowd, hiding from view.

"I'll protect you! Terra and Aqua will too, once they get here!" he answered, putting his right hand on his chest. The voices rose, and a woman took a step forward, pointing at him.

"It is you! The one those men who set the city on fire are after, you and your two friends. They are after you, the three apprentices from the castle!" she yelled, causing the boy to wince.

"What?" he didn't knew this, none of those who had decided to leave the city had told him there were someone else in the city besides the weird creatures, _or_ that they were after him, Terra and Aqua. Could it be someone from that lab? But that was impossible! They had been gone for so long.

"My family. . . They are all dead because of you!" a teenager a little older than himself, accused. Shouts of pain and anger rose along with the sound of burning wood.

"My daughter!"

"My brother!"

"Dad!"

"Mom!"

"Leave! Go!"

"We don't need you here, you just bring us trouble!"

"Give them back!" a sharp rock hit him right above his left eye, causing the skin to rip and blood to travel down his face, blocking parts of his vision. It didn't hurt, not as much as their words. Other things came flying his way, but luckily he was able to avoid them. However, they messed up his balance, and he would have fallen face first into the fountain if someone had not grabbed a hold of his wrist.

"VEN!" a familiar voice called out, and Ventus suddenly found himself looking up into Aqua's worried face. She had saved him from the fall, and luckily enough not noticed the blood running down his face. It would just make her even more worried and cause her to use one of her healing spells, which in turn would drain her for energy she most likely could get use for later on. Terra appeared beside her, he too carrying the same look. What was they so worried about, he hadn't been hurt badly, not enough to give them such looks.

"What's the meaning of this?" the Master's loud voice called out.

"They! Your apprentices! They are the reason those _creatures_ are here!" someone answered, supported by several other voices. Eraqus looked from one side to the other, watched them all carefully before he opened his mouth.

"Are there anyone left in the other parts of the city?" calm and controlled, just like a master should be. Some shook their heads.

"No, those who are not here have either escaped or died," they didn't need to say anymore, the sentence spoke all it needed to. Their Master sighed, before summoning his own Keyblade. _Master Keeper_ shined weakly in the light of the flames.

"We are evacuating the city," he said, before walking toward the edge of the market and the beginning of the road toward the castle. They followed him, every single one of them. the three apprentices stared after their Master, before they too rose to their feet – not that Ven remembered them sitting down at all – and summoned their Keyblades. If this group were to reach the castle, they would need their help. After all, four were better than one.

Terra was the first to attack head first on their way, running straight forward when he saw the enemy approaching the group. Dust gathered as he slashed them with _Earthshaker_, driving the rest back in fear of the weapon. Aqua handled those further away, keeping them distant with a continuation of magic spells, accompanied with half-hearted _Aero_ spells from Ventus. It was the magic he handled best, and even though _Wayward Wind _rested in his hand, he didn't trust himself to use it just yet.

They reached the edge of the city, where no enemies seemed to follow them; the creatures stayed inside the city, even if their prey had gotten outside. It was strange, how the people from the city said someone had been looking for them, when those shadow creatures didn't pay more attention to them than others.

The civilians ran up the road to the castle, leaving only the master himself and his three apprentices behind. Their Master turned toward them, a sad look filling his eyes.

"Go, leave this city and escape. You are strong enough to take care of yourselves," he said, unspoken words hanging in the air around them. _I can't let them take you_.

The fire had spread, reached the place where they now stood.

"But-!" Aqua tried, dismissing _Rainfell_.

"GO!" Eraqus yelled, waving his apprentices away with one hand as he readied himself to an attack against the darkness in the city.

"But, Master!" Terra tried, taking one step towards the man who had taken them in, the one who had trained them for battle since they were young and now told them to leave the fight and escape. Ventus followed his lead, ready to protest if his older friend did so. It felt bad to leave the city in this state, even if most of the habitants had been evacuated and they had none left to save. It didn't matter what they had said, he still cared, and the city still stood, even if parts of it had been ruined in the fires that still raged around them.

"If you want to help, then leave!" the man called out, turning his head to glare at the three behind him.

_They are after you, the three apprentices from the castle. _

_My family. . . They are all dead because of you!_

Ven flinched, his eyes slowly filling with guilt as he moved them to the ground beneath his feet. It would probably be better if they left. Then the enemy would disappear and the people from Land of Departure could return to their homes, return to their lives before this. The city needed to be rebuilt, but it wouldn't take too long if everyone helped out.

Everyone except from them.

A hand came to rest on his shoulder, and the burning city around him disappeared in a white light.

*~^:^~*

**AN:** Hope you enjoyed it^^ Sorry if anything was weird or confusing.


	4. Chapter 3: Starry Night

Thank you so much to all who reviewed/alerted/favourited! I really appreciate it.

**Disclaimer:** Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy belongs to their rightful owners.

**Chapter 3**

**Starry Night**

Ventus felt his back meeting soft grass as they landed, a little dizzy from the sudden use of _teleport_. Why did Aqua always have to use it without a warning first? It would have saved him from so many scares and surprises if she did.

The blond boy opened his eyes – not that he could remember closing them in the first place – and found himself staring up at the starry sky above him. Funny how clearer they seemed here compared to home.

Most likely because there were no city lights to tone them down as far as he could see.

"Everyone okay?" Terra asked. Did he sound worried? Ven wasn't sure, but he knew Terra didn't sound like that, not normally. He could hear Aqua mutter a _yes_ from somewhere beside him, and found himself doing the same, despite the feeling that not everything was okay. It wouldn't be strange though; they had just watched their home city burn down _and _left it behind. No one would be perfectly _okay_ with that.

Ventus sat up, glanced around in the dark night surrounding them. Pale moonlight gave it all a weak glow, made him able to see that they had landed in some fields between high mountains and what could seem like a forest.

"Where are we?" the words fell out of his mouth before he could stop them, filling the otherwise silent night with his voice.

"I took us somewhere behind the mountains surrounding _Land of Departure_. My goal was somewhere further away, but something seemed to disturb the magic and it wouldn't take us there," the blue haired woman explained, rising to her feet. She, too, sounded worried, just like Terra. He couldn't blame them, not when everything inside him told him to run as fast as he could back to their home and make sure things was alright.

_We don't need you here, you just bring us trouble!_

The blond boy clenched his fists, struggled to stop the guilt from rising inside his chest. Maybe it was for the better that they left; at least the enemy would pull back once they realised their targets weren't there anymore.

"What now? Do we go home, or head somewhere else?" Terra questioned as he and Ven stood up from the ground.

"We can't go home; Master told us to leave," Aqua answered. The brown haired male looked at her through the darkness. He didn't say anything, just watched her with an unreadable glance, his eyes the only thing visible in the weak light.

"They said it was our fault, the town folks I mean, and that everything happened because someone was looking for us." All eyes landed on the youngest member of the trio, glued to him as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Aqua looked him over for a second, before smiling sadly.

"That explains why they didn't seem to trust us," she muttered while she walked over to her younger friend and coming to a stop right in front of him. When Aqua, Terra and the Master had arrived at the Market earlier, people had shouted cruel things and thrown rocks at the young boy. The blue haired woman hadn't seen anything hit him, but it was likely something had. Nothing could be seen from where she stood, but the dark was thick and stopped her from getting all the details. She decided not to question him as he avoided meeting her eyes. It bothered him, that was clear as a sunny day, probably more than he would let on, and knowing Ven, he most likely wouldn't tell them everything that was on his mind.

"I wonder what they want with us. What could be so important that they would burn down an entire city just to find us?" Terra questioned, turning around to face the mountains behind them. Aqua rested her eyes on his back for a minute.

"Should we try to find out? Why they are after us and why they so recklessly attacked Land of Departure?" she said, waiting for her childhood friend to give a sign of agreement or reject. When it didn't happen, she decided he was too lost in thoughts and turned her attention to the blond boy again.

Ven's eyes met hers, and she found herself staring into a pool of hope mixed with the familiar light he possessed. It caught the blue haired woman off guard and caused her to take a step back, which in turn gained them Terra's full attention as she collided with his back.

"We could go search for the others as well!" Ventus said, smiling widely in the pale moonlight, "we can't go home and find out who attacked home could take a while, so why not?"

Terra and Aqua looked at each other, before breaking out in soft smiles.

"Of course we can. If those who did this were from that lab, the others would probably be in just as much danger as we," the young woman said, her fists tightening upon the memory of their past.

"But where do we start? We don't have any leads at all," Terra stated. Ventus put his arms behind his head as he thought it over, tried to remember anything from the geography lessons they had had over the years.

"Without access to Land of Departure, we are stuck here on the North Continent," he pointed out, knowing very well that even in top shape, there was no way Aqua nor Terra could take them as far away as the South Continent or the West Continent with their _teleport_ or _warp_.

"Twilight Town has a port as well, but from here that city is rather far away. We could use the Glider forms of our Keyblades, thought," Terra commented.

"Let's keep away from spells and Gliders; they are both risky if someone is looking for us." The trio was left in a heavy silence as all three lost themselves in thoughts, until Ventus spoke up.

"Radiant Garden," he said, gaining the attention of both his older friends, "it is up north and not that far away, so as long as we follow the Northern Star we should be fine," the young blond pointed up at the sky above them, easily finding the star he talked about. Terra tired to fix his gaze on the spot Ventus separated from the rest of the starry sky. How the hell did that kid tell one star apart from the rest? They all looked similar to him, and to Aqua as well, considering the look her face wore as she too tried to find the star. After a short while, she turned her look toward their friend.

"But, Ven, following a star would only allow us to travel at night. I agree Radiant Garden is probably the best place we could go, but it is safer to travel that road in daylight due to the dangers of the forest surrounding it," she fixed her glance on them both, taking in all the details she could see in the dark night. The road to Radiant Garden was dangerous at night, and even with their weapons and magic, she wasn't sure if they could make it. But the blond seemed to flow over with ideas.

"If we follow the star tonight, we could reach the edge of the forest before the night is over. From there we can travel at day, using the old road," he explained, his entire being filled with eager. They couldn't deny it; it _was_ after all a good plan.

*~^:^~*

Terra stared off into the fires in front of him, trying to warm bodyparts that had grown cold during their travel from the plains to the edge of the forest. Ven's plan about following the Northern Star had turned out to be flawless, even though the boy was the only one who knew _which_ star they followed. It hadn't been a problem to begin with, as the boy was happy to lead the way and making sure they followed him, but as the hours moved past them – the night had just started when they left Land of Departure, so it wasn't that late – Ventus became more and more exhausted.

It wasn't until he almost fell asleep while walking that his friends realised just how tired he really was, leading to an overprotective Aqua asking a worried Terra if he could give their young friend a piggyback ride the rest of the road, something the tall brunet agreed to do. It wasn't an unusual thing; each time the boy fell asleep outside of his bedroom, it was usually Terra who carried him back to his bed, mostly due to Aqua being busy and the Master being the Master. But following the correct star was hard when Ven wasn't awake to point it out anymore. It was pure luck that they ended up at the edge of the forest at all.

The fire was Aqua's creation; she had called forth a small one while they walked and kept it hovering over her hands until they reached a place they could rest for the night. It would keep them warm during the night and also keeping animals away from their little camp, and for some reason the blond boy had kept away from it too, even going as far as to lie down just outside the light circle once they woke him up after reaching the edge of the forest. Ventus, who hated the darkness and loved the light. Something was up, and the brunet knew Aqua would drag it out of him the next morning.

Terra turned his blue eyes toward the young woman next to him, whose gaze was just as fixed on the fire as his.

"Ven tried to avoid speaking of the city," she suddenly commented, moving her eyes from the fire to the sleeping form on the other side of it. "What he said explained the cold attitude they had, but he didn't want to talk about it." The brunet looked at her, before returning to staring into the fire.

"So you realised too, huh? That's why you didn't push him, right?" he tried to keep his voice low, just in case the blond boy wasn't asleep after all and decided to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Aqua didn't need to answer for him to know. Ven might accuse them of being able to read minds, but sometimes it didn't seem too far away from the truth.

"It's been ten years; if they were people from that lab, wouldn't they have searched through Land of Departure long time ago? It just seems a little off," he continued, causing the blue haired woman to fix her gaze on him.

"You're right, it does. Could they be after something else? Something we don't know about?"

"Maybe."

Silence surrounded them, allowed the soft breeze travel over them as it headed toward the forest behind them. The cold that followed the moon rested upon them like a blanket, made them shiver slightly. It would just become colder up north, even if the different right now between Land of Departure and this place was zero.

Aqua rose to her feet, left the little circle of light her fire had created. Terra was about to follow her with his eyes when he felt something rest against his back. The brunet froze, but relaxed again once he realised it was his childhood friend. She felt small against him, so tiny against his huge back. Almost fragile and breakable, something he knew Aqua was _not_.

It felt good, having her like that. A precious moment he didn't want to lose. They used to sit like this all the time, he remembered, back when they had just gotten to Land of Departure. Only those two and the starry sky above them.

The young woman's back shook slightly against his and the warmth of the fire embraced them both as they allowed themselves to face the past events of the day.


	5. Chapter 4: The Forest

Thank you so much to all who reviewed/alerted/favourited! You guys mean a lot for the continuation of this story!

I have been really stressed lately (with packing to a trip and homework), and I'm afraid that it might have affected this chapter xD Anyway, let's move on.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything.

**Chapter 4**

**The Forest**

When Ven woke up the following morning, he was not surprised to see the sun already rather high on the cloudless sky. Not at its highest point yet, but not far away from it either. Despite the fact that it was autumn, the sun still warmed enough for one to wear light clothes. It was a perfect temperature; not too warm, nor too cold. Perfect for working and travelling, at least.

The young blond sat up as he blinked in the sharp sunlight, trying to wake up enough to take in his surroundings. They had stopped right at the edge of the huge and dark forest, not too far away from the main road – which seemed hardly wide enough for two people to walk next to each other – to Radiant Garden, as it passed them by just a few metres to the left.

At least he hoped it was the right road.

The trees within his sight had started to turn orange instead of green, leaving the leaves to fall from their branches as the wind moved softly over them. They still gave off a sweet smell, though no longer the one of summer, but the one of autumn. Clear and sharp, ready to take all lives into the cold winter months which followed shortly.

He could feel the soft grass beneath his hands, still wet after a slightly cold night. Ventus didn't mind, though. If his clothes got wet, they would just dry up again as they travelled. No big deal, really.

Lifting his hands up to rub his eyes, the boy felt something dry against his cheek and hand.

Blood, dry blood from the cut he had gotten last night.

He casted a worried look toward the place he knew his friends would be, hoping none of them had noticed. Ven didn't want any of them to get all overprotective over something so small; they didn't need that at the moment, didn't need another thing to worry about.

Seeing his companions lying on their backs in the grass, he started rubbing his hand against his cheek to remove the traces of blood. For a moment he wished he had some water, until he remembered that the grass wasn't completely dry yet. By using it, he was soon finished with removing the blood. Once done, the blond boy stood up and walked over to his sleeping friends.

Aqua and Terra lay back to back, deep asleep if he were to judge by their breathing.

Ventus smiled. It was comforting to see them like that, sleeping so peacefully next to each other. At least something good could come out of what happened last night.

He would wake them up soon, and then they would start their travelling toward Radiant Garden, but before that, he would let them sleep.

The boy sat down next to the spot where the fire had been last night, glancing up at the sky above them.

*~^:^~*

They had been walking inside the forest for hours when Terra suddenly stopped, causing Ventus, who hadn't been paying attention, to collide into his back. The boy backed away and swore to himself as he rubbed his nose. Glaring to the left, he saw that Aqua had stopped as well, her blue eyes locked at something further down the road they were walking on.

What could make them both stop like that?

Filled with curiosity, the boy poked his head out from behind the oldest of them, completely forgetting that he was mad at him for stopping so suddenly, and found himself staring in surprise.

In front of them stood a young girl hardly any older than him, wearing nothing more than a plain white dress and light blue sandals. Pale blonde hair moved as she turned to look at them, dancing around light blue eyes and shining in the weak sunlight that reached them between the orange and red leaves. It wasn't her appearance that surprised the blond boy, more the fact that she was the first human they had seen all day. He had started to believe the road was completely abandoned all the way till Radiant Garden, a thought that his friends most likely shared with him if he was to judge by the look on their faces.

And what was such a young girl doing here all by herself?

Her blue eyes moved from Terra to Aqua, and finally to Ven, who earned a surprised and curious stare. Much more than his older friends got.

"Hello," Aqua tried, smiling friendly to the young girl. She glanced at the bluenette, before replying with a soft greeting. Blue eyes once more landed at the youngest of the trio.

"Are they friends of yours?" she asked softly, a weak smile covering her lips. Despite the smile and soft voice, she sounded slightly hurt, like someone who just found out their best friend had hidden an important secret. Ventus was taken off guard by the question and the way she said it. It was almost like she talked to an old friend, and the young blond knew he had _never_ met a girl who looked anything like her. Failed by his voice when he tried to answer, Ven decided just to nod.

"Ven, do you know her?" Terra whispered, his eyes filled with surprise. The blond boy was about to answer, when the girl got a sudden look of shock in her eyes.

"Ven?" she questioned, her eyes going from shocked to confused. The pieces fell in place inside Ventus' mind. The girl had thought he was someone else, someone close to her, apparently. Of course she would sound hurt if a close friend suddenly appeared with others she had never seen nor heard about.

So she had mistaken him for someone he was not. Someone who, by his guesses, looked like him. Someone like his twin.

Ventus didn't notice he had stopped breathing for a second before Aqua's worried face appeared in front of him, followed by a ruff shake from Terra. He shook them off and jumped forward, just to see the girl standing next to what looked like a dark hole in the air, ready to step into it.

"Wait! You know Roxas?" he shouted as he ran toward her, causing his friends to take a sharp breath in surprise. The girl smiled sadly at him as she stepped into the dark hole, soon starting to fade away.

"Be ready, the creatures of the dark is coming," she said as she disappeared, leaving Ven's fingers to touch nothing but air when he reached forward to grab her arm. The blond boy could feel disappointment rise within his chest. He had found a clue to where his brother might be, and it had disappeared like smoke.

"Ven!" Aqua's voice dragged him back into reality, causing him to turn around and find his friends armed with their Keyblades. Why had they taken them out, he wondered. His question was answered shortly as a small, black creature jumped in between him and his friends. A creature similar to those who had attacked Land of Depature last night.

The blond boy summoned his weapon, lifting _Wayward Wind_ before he ran forward. The anger he had felt toward those who burned his home down returned joined forces with the disappointment of the girl just vanishing. He attacked, slashed at the creature and took down its companions as three more appeared around him. It became a repeating circle as he struggled desperately to keep the upper hand.

Back away.

Attack.

Slash.

See if Aqua and Terra were still okay.

Back away.

Attack.

Slash.

The anger died away little by little, leaving him less and less willingly to attack the creatures as they showed up, and soon he found himself overwhelmed by their number. No matter how many he took down, three or four more would always appear, and by now it was impossible for him to see his friends through the mass of black creatures around him.

One of them tried to attack him with their arms, but missed as the boy pulled back in the last second. He was starting to get exhausted by this constant pattern he had put up, the blond youth realized as he stepped back, catching his breath in the progress.

"Need some help?" a feminine voice called out beside him, and the young boy found himself staring at a young girl standing beside him. It wasn't the blonde one from earlier, as this one had short, black hair. Dark eyes grinned to him as she left his side and ran forward, throwing a large shuriken into the crowd of dark creatures. A white headband held the hair away from her face, not allowing it to blind her as the fought. She wore a green, sleeveless turtleneck jumper above a pair of tan shorts, while a huge gauntlet covered her entire left arm. The girl shouted something he didn't quite catch, and a young man with spiky black hair appeared next to her shortly after. Out of the corner of his eyes, Ven could also see a brown-haired teen – Ventus assumed he was a teen, as he didn't look like he could be around Aqua or Terra's age - fight with something that looked like a huge gun.

With a grin and renewed strength, the boy followed the girl, battling through the creatures with all he had.

After a while, the remaining creatures seemed to fade away, leaving the forest once again almost deserted. It was almost amazing how they had been able to fight inside it at all without colliding with a tree or tripping over a branch.

Ventus dismissed his Keyblade and turned around as he heard footsteps approaching. Terra and Aqua, both without their weapons, both ready to say something as they stopped next to him.

However, they never got that far before an unfamiliar voice rang through the forest.

"Hey! Are you okay?" the Keyblade-wielding trio turned to meet their unexpected helpers. The one who had spoken, who's mouth was still open when they turned around, was the young man with spiky, black hair. He swung a simple sword over his shoulder as he walked toward them, glowing, sky blue eyes inspecting the trio closely. The young girl followed him closely, dragging the second male with her. The girl grinned widely as she reached them, releasing her prisoner once they arrived at their goal.

"You seemed to have some trouble, so it was lucky for you that we were in the area," the black haired girl began, before she placed her hand over her chest and straightened up in full height, which was a little taller than Ventus, "it was a good thing you were saved by the Single White Rose of Wutai and her friends instead of falling into the wrong crowd." The trio blinked, taken a little back by the girl's words. A mocking snort of laughter escaped the brown haired teen, earning him a hateful glare from the girl.

"What was that, Lion-boy? Geez, you are just as bad as the Puppy over there!" she shouted, placing her hands on her hips.

"…Whatever."

However, the black haired man had turned his attention toward her upon the last sentence she spoke and seemed to be doing something between sulking and glaring, obviously not happy with the nickname she used on him. After failing in not finding the right words to tell the girl, nor making her realize that he was angry, he turned back to the trio they had saved, smiling friendly.

"Ignore those two over there. I'm Zack Fair, nice to meet you!" he said, holding out his hand for each of them to shake.

"I'm Aqua," the female of the trio said, taking his hand.

"My name is Ventus, but everybody calls me Ven."

"Terra," the last name caused the girl to jump forward and circle the older male with a fascinated look.

"Really? Your name is Terra? That's so cool! Just wait 'till the others hear this!" with that she skipped over to shake Aqua and Ventus' hands and introduce herself as "their savior, the Great Ninja Yuffie Kisaragi", leaving a rather confused Terra behind with no explanation for her words.

The brown haired teen came over to do as his comrades, still glaring in the direction of the young girl.

"The name's Squall Leonhart," he said, crossing his arms while keeping an eye on Yuffie, who kept circling around the trio.

Terra sent them a suspicions look. Something about these strangers told him to be careful, but the feeling didn't seem to hit Aqua and Ven at all, as they both were busy talking with the oldest male. He couldn't tell them either; they had too much on their minds for him to bother them with this as well. Terra breathed out as a small smile formed on his lips. He would just have to watch out for them and keep his friends out of trouble.

*~^:^~*

**A/N:** Some of you might have noticed that I update this story every Sunday, but due to a trip I'm going on with my class I will not be able to do so next week. Therefore, the next chapter would not be out before 29/10 (or 10/29, for those who prefer it that way), a week later than usual. So, as a payment for that, I'll make sure that chapter is far better (and maybe even longer) that this one.

Oh, and I also thought about putting up a small introduction of the Final Fantasy characters at the end of the chapter they first appears in, for those who only play Kingdom Hearts. It would be like this:

Squall Leonhart: The main character from Final Fantasy VIII. He appears in Kingdom Hearts under the name **Leon** (though that will most likely not be used in this story as I prefer the name Squall).

Yuffie Kisaragi: One of two secret characters from Final Fantasy VII. She appears in Kingdom Hearts together with Squall.

Zack Fair: The main character from Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII and he also play an important role in Final Fantasy VII. He appears in Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep as the only Final Fantasy character in this game except from Moogles.

I haven't entirely made up my mind about this yet, so I'm testing it out in this chapter. If most seem to hate it, I'll cut it out, or if people want more background information, I'll add it in, so it all depends on you guys.


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